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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. kick — in football
  4. spring — a coil
  5. march — the month
  6. roll — a list
  7. spring — the season
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. march — the month
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. degree — temperature
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. spring — of water
  14. march — music
  15. rush — hurry
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. degree — an amount
  24. roll — a cake

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com